(1978-)

Who Is Zoe Saldana?

Dancer-turned-actress Zoe Saldana started her acting career in films like Crossroads, Drumline, The Terminal and Pirates of the Caribbean. After years of diverse work, in 2009 she landed leading roles in the blockbusters Star Trek, Avatar and Guardians of the Galaxy. She's also been a model for Avon, the Gap and Calvin Klein.

Early Life

Born in Passaic, New Jersey on June 19, 1978, Zoe Saldana grew up in Queens. She is of mixed ethnic heritage, with her mother being of Puerto Rican descent and her father hailing from the Dominican Republic. At the age of nine, her father died in a car accident, and her mother subsequently moved Saldana and her two sisters Cisely and Mariel to the Dominican Republic, where they lived with their grandparents.

The three siblings grew up very close while Saldana studied a variety of dance forms at ECOS Espacio de Danza Academy, developing a particular fondness for ballet. She moved back to New York at 17 and continued dancing while also joining Faces, a teen-oriented theater group, and the New York Youth Theater, through which she was discovered by a talent agent.

Movies

'Center Stage,' 'Drumline,' 'Pirates of the Caribbean'

Following a guest spot on Law & Order, Saldana made her movie acting debut appropriately enough with the dance drama Center Stage, which portrayed a group of ballet students training at an academy. She then snagged supporting roles over the following years in a diverse array of films. After being featured in the teen comedy Get Over It!, the Britney Spears vehicle Crossroads and the hip-hop thriller Snipes, Saldana portrayed the captain of a dance team in the 2002 film Drumline. She then appeared in 2003 in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl as Anamaria, a former lover of Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) who gives him a wallop for his roguish behavior. In 2004 she appeared in the drama The Terminal with Tom Hanks, as well as Haven.

'Guess Who'

During the mid-2000s, Saldana continued to act in a number of ensemble films, both commercial and indie, and appeared on TV with roles in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Six Degrees. In 2005 she starred in Guess Who, a comedic update of the Sidney Poitier and Spencer Tracy classic Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; the newer version switched the racial roles of the original, with Bernie Mac as Saldana's wary African American father and Ashton Kutcher as her beleaguered white fiancé. She was also later featured in the 2008 thriller Vantage Point.

'Star Trek' and 'Avatar'

The year 2009 was a blockbuster year for Saldana's career. After the thriller The Skeptic, Saldana starred in the remake of Star Trek by director J.J. Abrams, in which she played Communications Officer Uhura. In December 2009, she starred as Neytiri, an alien warrior, in the 3D sci-fi epic Avatar, which would go on to become the world's highest-grossing film. Director James Cameron used performance capture technology to create Saldana's computer-generated character, driven by her bodily movements and facial expressions in a studio setting. Saldana spent months training for the athletic role, taking up horseback riding, archery and wushu martial arts.

The following year, Saldana starred in the ensemble comedic remake Death at a Funeral with Chris Rock and Martin Lawrence, as well as two action capers — The Losers and Takers — and the comedic Burning Palms. In 2011, she landed the sole lead role in Colombiana, which featured Saldana as an assassin out to avenge the murder of her parents.

'Guardians of the Galaxy'

In 2012, she starred in The Words, a return to serious drama for the actress about a struggling writer, portrayed by Cooper, who plagiarizes another person's work. She also co-directed episodes for The Rope, a web series developed by Vin Diesel about bouncers and the world of nightlife.

Saldana returned to the Star Trek franchise with the 2013 sequel Into Darkness. And the following year she added comic-book hero to her list of roles, portraying the green-skinned assassin Gamora in Marvel's well-received Guardians of the Galaxy, which broke August's domestic box office records for debut earnings. The project also co-starred Diesel and Cooper, among others. In 2017, Saldana returned to her Guardians role in the sequel, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

'Nina'

In 2016, Saldana starred as jazz musician Nina Simone in the biopic Nina to much controversy. Not only did Simone's family object to Saldana's casting, but critics were also outraged over Saldana's "blackface performance" (she wore darker foundation) and conventional good looks, which they argue did not reflect the musician's experience as a Black woman.

'Star Trek Beyond' and 'Avengers'

After starring in the Star Trek sequel, Star Trek Beyond (2016) and Live By Night (2016), Saldana reprised her Guardians role as part of a star-studded ensemble superhero cast in Marvel's Avengers: Infinity War in 2018 and Avengers: Endgame in 2019.

Modeling Career

Outside of acting, Saldana has a strong interest in fashion. She has appeared in Calvin Klein lingerie commercials, in which she's performed monologues offering tidbits on vulnerability, mystery and strength. She's also appeared as a spokesperson for Avon, and modeled with her sisters in a Gap print ad and W magazine editorial. Saldana has appeared in many other magazines as well, including Elle, Vanity Fair, Latina, GQ Italia, Essence, Nylon and InStyle.

Husband and Kids

Saldana was reportedly romantically linked with Bradley Cooper after her relationship ended with longtime boyfriend, actor Keith Britton, with whom she partnered to found the website My Fashion Database. In 2013, Saldana married Marco Perego. In 2014, the couple welcomed twins boys Bowie and Cy and three years later, another son named Zen.

QUICK FACTS

  • Birth Year: 1978
  • Birth date: June 19, 1978
  • Birth State: New Jersey
  • Birth City: Passaic
  • Birth Country: United States
  • Gender: Female
  • Best Known For: Zoe Saldana is an American actress known for starring in blockbusters such as 'Star Trek,' 'Avatar' and 'Guardians of the Galaxy.'
  • Industries
    • Film
    • Theater and Dance
  • Astrological Sign: Gemini
  • Schools
    • ECOS Espacio de Danza Academy
  • Nacionalities
    • Dominican

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CITATION INFORMATION

  • Article Title: Zoe Saldana Biography
  • Author: Biography.com Editors
  • Website Name: The Biography.com website
  • Url: https://www.biography.com/actors/zoe-saldana
  • Access Date:
  • Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
  • Last Updated: September 1, 2020
  • Original Published Date: April 2, 2014

QUOTES

  • I got so much out of being a dancer. The stillness of it. The discipline. The dedication.
  • I loved stories that helped me escape, and those happened to be the stories that fall into the category of geekiness. So, therefore, I am a proud geek!
  • I think in American society, we're messing up our kids by taking away the education on awareness of sexuality and replacing it with violence, guns and video games.